Tara-
I have had the same experience with my own kids and not being sure when they were reading and at what level. I think I was in denial with DS, as he was my first baby and I kept thinking that he was remembering words from signs and books. He used to insist that I read piles of books to him, and he particularly liked the DK books that use real photos and have a word printed to correspond to each picture. So we would sit and read books of solitary words: cloud, rain, weather, flowers, garden, sun, hat,... I preferred stories, but that wasn't his thing.
Similar to Elizabeth from the clip, he used to go through the supermarket reading words. Shortly after his 2nd birthday, he spontaneously read, "We save you more" and then pointed to my customer discount card and said, "This says edge". At that point, I finally understood that he was really reading. I took him home and told my husband about it that night. He didn't believe me. he worte, "MOM IS NUTS" on a piece of paper and asked DS to read it. He giggled, and read it clear as day. By the time he was 2.5, he was reading some adult non fiction and looking up rocks and seashells in field guides.
It is interesting that the couple in the video talked about Signing Time. My youngest LOVES ST. She got her first ST dvd for her 1st birthday. By the time she was two, she knew the entire ASL alphabet and at least 100 other signs. I wonder if my kids would have read even earlier had I allowed them to watch tv before age 1. I recall someone here talking about Dr. Ruf and her thoughts on early tv exposure facilitating early reading.
Elizabeth is cute as a button and I am glad that they didn't make her out to be a freak. Very fun to see her do her thing!
